A “HUGE spike” in kerbside rubbish collection fees could be looming for Mornington Peninsula ratepayers as the state government rolls out a four-bin waste and recycling system.
All local governments, including Mornington Peninsula Shire, will transition to mixed recycling, food and garden organics (FOGO), general rubbish, and a new glass recycling service, which is set to be introduced by 2027.
The new system is part of an effort to improve recycling and reduce landfill, including separating glass bottles and jars into a new purple lid glass bin. A FOGO service is expected to be introduced by 2030.
While the state government has maintained it would provide funding to councils for the new services, there are fears ratepayers could absorb some or all of the costs – which is estimated to be in the tens of millions of dollars for the Mornington Peninsula shire, with one councillor expressing concerns.
According to Council Watch president, Dean Hurlston, a waste charge increase to cover all four bins is “not going to come out of council’s money – they’re not going pay for it”. “We’ll see a huge spike in council waste levy bills on rate notices,” said Hurlston. “Our issue is there’s over $100 million already that ratepayers have unfairly been charged in waste levies. The Minister has admitted that and given councils an extension to 2025 to fix the issue. “What we are worried about is that we will see councils with this new cost seek to recover every dollar and again behave inappropriately and overcharge.”
Mornington Peninsula Shire was contacted about whether the state government would be assisting in funding the new bin services and what cost, if any, would be passed onto ratepayers in waste levies. But the shire said in a statement that it could not “provide a response to this at present due to caretaker regulations (before a council general election in October) prohibiting any comment that could be deemed political”.
The state government also did not respond to a series of questions, including costs to ratepayers and whether it was in talks with the shire. Instead, a Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action spokesperson said the government had “invested $129 million to help councils reform household recycling”. This included “support for all 79 councils to buy new bins, improve drop-off facilities, educate residents on how to use the new bins and invest in new recycling infrastructure”.
The spokesperson added the roll out of FOGO services were ahead of schedule with 57 councils already using the service, and that “it’s expected to be rolled out statewide by 2027 three years ahead of schedule”. According to a Mornington Peninsula Shire internal report seen by The News, the “service standards proposed raise a number of key issues for our region” including consideration of a potential start date of next year and aligning all four bins by 1 July 2027 when this “was previously 2030 for FOGO and bin lid standardisation”. It also noted there was a “mandated glass collection service by 2027” with “no alternatives/options for the shire”.
Red Hill Ward Cr David Gill said while he was all for the objectives of the new service, he was concerned about the potential financial burden it could place on ratepayers. “How much is it going to cost ratepayers to go to this system and then do people really want to have four bins sitting around?” he told The News. “The issue is providing more bins and then having to replace existing bins at a huge cost to ratepayers.”
So far 36 councils, including Frankston, have introduced separate glass collection. Frankston council has been contacted for comment about whether ratepayers are being charged additionally to pay for the new service. One ratepayer, speaking anonymously, said their latest rates notice was confusing as there was a fee for a “garbage charge 80L” and “green waste” but nothing itemised for glass waste.
The City of Ballarat’s website has advised residents of changes being made to introduce a four-bin service, saying it “will mean an increase in the waste levy for ratepayers of about $16 annually for general waste, recycling, and FOGO and an extra $10 annually for ratepayers for glass collection”.
The News is not suggesting that Mornington Peninsula Shire would follow suit, only that it raises questions about what costs, if any, would be passed on to ratepayers. As it stands, the shire noted in its May 2024-25 budget that a waste service charge to ratepayers would drop $40 from $446 to $406 next year “mainly due to a reduction in cost of the new waste management contracts”.
First published in the Mornington News – 1 October 2024
